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A steady flow of visitors come to place their offerings at the memorial stretched along the front of the abandoned home where the remains of 12-year-old Jacqueline “Mimi” Torres Garcia were found in New Britain, Connecticut on Oct. 14, 2025. Credit: Joe Amon / Connecticut Public

One of the adults charged in the death of Jacqueline “Mimi” Torres-García, whose body was found in a plastic bin in New Britain late last year, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday.

Jonatan Nanita, the 11-year-old’s mother’s then-boyfriend, pleaded not guilty to several felonies related to the child’s death, including kidnapping and murder charges. State Superior Court Judge Robert D’Andrea ruled Wednesday that the court could consider life in prison for Nanita.

Torres-García’s death has spurred calls for more oversight of the Department of Children and Families and of the homeschooling system. DCF had checked in on the family because of an open case involving Torres-García’s sister. The family allegedly had a now-22-year-old pretend to be the 11-year-old on a video call with a case worker. Her mother, Karla García, had also told the school district where the child was enrolled that she was going to be homeschooled.

Autopsy results show that Torres-Garcíadied of starvation and child abuse. She weighed only 27 pounds and her body showed signs of “marked emaciation.” She was also allegedly restrained with zip ties, according to witness reports.

In January 2025, DCF staff responded to a report of maltreatment of Torres-García’s sister. When DCF staff conducted its investigation, workers were told that Torres-García was being homeschooled out of state and would return. DCF staff then had a video call with a woman who Karla García, Torres-García’s mother, said was her daughter. 

But court documents show that Torres-García died in September 2024, months before the video call.

“The circumstances in this case outlined well-orchestrated efforts by adults, one rarely if ever seen before in our Agency, to conceal the whereabouts of a child by being intentionally deceptive and producing a completely different child to pose as the child in question,” said DCF Commissioner Susan Hamilton in a previous statement.

The child’s mother had also reached out to school officials in late July 2024 with a short email alerting them of her intention to homeschool the 11-year-old. Less than two months later, the girl was dead, according to court documents.

On Wednesday, lawmakers gathered for a public hearing regarding new regulations for the homeschooling system, and last week, the Children’s Committee moved a bill forward that would introduce more oversight of DCF as well as families that pull their children out of public school.

Nanita, Karla García and Torres-García’s aunt, Jackelyn García, have all been charged in relation to the abuse and death of the child.

Nanita’s attorney told D’Andrea during a January hearing that he should not be considered liable in Torres-García’s murder because she was under her mother’s care and there is not sufficient evidence to suggest that Nanita took part in the decision to starve her to death.

The judge decided there is probable cause, and the case will move forward. Karla and Jackelyn García are next scheduled to appear in court Friday. Nanita’s next hearing is scheduled for May.

CT Mirror reporter Laura Tillman contributed to this story.

Ginny is CT Mirror's children's issues and housing reporter. She covers a variety of topics ranging from child welfare to affordable housing and zoning. Ginny grew up in Arkansas and graduated from the University of Arkansas' Lemke School of Journalism in 2017. She began her career at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette where she covered housing, homelessness, and juvenile justice on the investigations team. Along the way Ginny was awarded a 2019 Data Fellowship through the Annenberg Center for Health Journalism at the University of Southern California. She moved to Connecticut in 2021.